Vocational education & elderly care in Japan

During the four days of the study tour, the delegation of the Hong Kong Vocational Training Institute had the opportunity to find out the measures being experimented and implemented in Japan. They have learnt how the country has decided to address the challenges of educating more skilled carers and to tackle the issue of labour shortage in health and social care services, especially in caring for dependent older people. The Japanese government has indeed decided to make massive investment in the training of more staff but also (and mainly) in the development of new technologies to cope with the increasing needs and issues of dependence in institutions and at home.

From a detailed presentation of the Japanese education system by the director of the Japanese Juvenile Education College to the testing of the latest technological innovations of the Koba laboratory of the University of Tokyo, as well as the visit of an innovative care home/training center, the delegates were able to observe the practical implementation of solutions and new trends developed by Japan for a better support of their seniors.